>> live and in hd. this is abc 7 breaking news. >> we are beginning with breaking news in d.c.. eastbound new york avenue is shut down because of a crash involving four vehicles. this is a live look at the traffic camera from that area.

there could be as many as 11 people who need to be transportedo the hospital including five children. we will bring you updates throughout this newscast. >> closing arguments in the misconduct trial of anne arundel county executive john leopold. leopold's attorneys do not by they are not denying it, but they insist he did not break the law. in the meantime, jury deliberations have resumed in the murder trial of of, culpeper police officer. he testified that he shot patricia cook when on arms. she trapped his arm in the window and tried to drive of. witnesses say his arm was never tracked. >> the super bowl is about to get under way. the 49ers will take on the

reagans in the big game. we want to go live -- take on the ravens in the big game. we want to go live to john collins. >> we are on the field. this is media the. this is what many describe as the nfl circus and a new orleans about a week before mardi gras. they are even handing out beads. the 49ers are on the field. they are being interviewed by all kinds of reporters from around the world today. add this is like up close how is this media day it? -- how isyour opponents, the baltimore ravens any kind words about ray lewis? >> they did a great job. they have the same last name as

my last name. >> what is the strangest questions you have gotten today? >> who has the best? >> who does have the best? >> forty-niners, good luck to you. of course, we have the ravens coming up in just little bit today. the 49ers of done their portion of media the. you have about 2000 fans out here in the seats but on the field, u.s. thousands and thousands of reporters and photographers. -- you have thousands and thousands of reporters and photographers. they have set up individual booths where reporters are able to individually interviewed these players and ask them just about anything. of course, this is the super dome. it is amazing to think that in 2005 there was talk of closing

down this place. now it is vibrant as the city tries to bounce back from hurricane katrina. this will be the first post- katrina superbowl the city will host, and the mayor wants to post many more. media day. is a circus. reporting live in new orleans inside the superdome, john gonzalez abc7 news. >> only johnny g right? >> i love that he is right in the center of the action. across the country people are getting snow. a powerful cold front is bringing in wild weather. cold weather has been reported from texas to kansas. it will not last. it is rippling to the east enjoying milder weather

today. adam caskey is here now with a look at our first forecast. adam i know this time of year you do not prefer the warm temperatures. >> that is right. i would rather be need deep in snow. it is january. we will the colder temperatures later this week. bright sunshine. hi cloud over arlington. 61 degrees measured at washington-lee high school. 67 in manassas. 69 in frederick. 67 in madison, va.. some locations out of washington are at that 70-degree mark. i think tomorrow we will see more 70's. sections of the country from kansas down towards dallas, that is the section for

thunderstorms today. as that pushes east toward, i think we will see strong thunderstorms tomorrow. i will time out with the futurecast. >> scott? >> now, the boy scouts is making changes to its longstanding no gays policy. under the new policy, local groups could decide for themselves how to handle the issue. >> president obama in las vegas unveiling his immigration reform proposal. this comes a day after a bipartisan group of senators laid out a plan that would give illegal immigrants a pathway to citizenship in exchange for tighter border security. lawmakers believe they can get that through the senate. >> more big news from capitol hill. massachusetts senator john kerry is one step closer to being the new secretary of state.

the senate foreign relations committee approved his nomination. now the vote goes to the full senate, which is expected to vote this afternoon. he has served on the foreign affairs panel for 28 years and has headed it for the last four. and president obama's transportation secretary ray lahood is stepping down. he is the last republican member of the cabinet, and he says once his successor is confirmed, he will be leaving the administration. during his time he managed a number of highway safety projects. he will not run for office in his home state of illinois saying "you should go out while they are applauding." >> some of the victims of sandy hook elementary are pushing for change. at at at on a bipartisan gun task force the mother of six shared her story. >> i need to channel this into

action for the greater good that there be some measure of something positive. >> yesterday's hearing second of three hearings lawmakers are holding. they are considering 91 new gun measures for the state, some including banning certain types of ammunition. >> meanwhile a share in wisconsin is catching heat -- a share of -- sheriff in wisconsin is catching heat for saying people are better off protecting themselves and calling 911. >> we're getting to the point where 911 is not going to be any use. >> city and county leaders are none too happy with his comments, saying that he is schering residents into thinking milwaukee is not say if. this is a great story. >> he lost the use of both arms

and legs when his unit was attacked in iraq. he is the first surviving quad amputee in the iraq war. he says he has never been bitter about his injury, but this operation changed his life. >> it gave me a lot of hope for the future. i feel like i am getting a second chance to start over after i got hurt. i am excited for the future. >> he still less several years up there be ahead of him. his nerves can only grow back at the rate of 1 inch per month at best. doctors at johns hopkins have developed a special regimen for him. we will hear more from the soldier himself tonight on abc 7 news at 5:00. coming up on abc7 news at noon, in questionable company today.

what that could land him in big trouble. >> and at another famous stuck for a famous tight rope walker. why this one is personal. >> and a deadly night fire in brazil. the very latest about the fire that left more than 200 dead. >> here is a live look outside this noon. how long will this stick around?

>> you are watching abc 7 news at noon with scott pillman and cynne simpson.

this is abc 7 news on your side. >> more arrests in that deadly night club fire that killed more than two wonder people in brazil. >> with the nation reeling with those images the club gowers frantically acting through walls to rescue those trapped authorities moved swiftly to arrest those responsible for the disco bair. they have arrested two club owners and two members of the band that lit flares. fire spread quickly, joking at some 200 celebrating -- choking some 200 celebrating college students. officials found no fewer than nine infractions including flammable building materials and accessible emergency exits

and exceeded crowd capacity. >> it is impossible to underestimate the impact these deaths have had on this community. >> on monday come up with parents draping them -- on monday, with parents draping themselves over caskets, all that remained was this tableau of teenagers & coffins. into maria -- stand-up maria results. >> of florida teenager is giving back to his hometown the only way he knows how. nik wallenda -- just moments ago he finished yet another stunt. he is a member of the flying wallenda family. he walked 158 -- 150 feet in the air, no safety harness.

>> we have warmer temperatures moving in, but it is nothing like the beach weather in australia. these people are swimming in a sea foam. it is a patch of rough weather in some parts of the country that have turned some waters into a bubble bath. some beaches have been closed because the waters are too dangerous. a huge snow fight broke out this weekend -- it started with just a handful of students. they got a few passers-by, and as you can imagine, the rest is history as they would say. >> remember the good old days. we used to do this in dupont circle? >> yes. >> we are over 2. >> it is time for another s nowmaggeddon.

>> there is no chance of that. >> 0. >> yes big time 0. by the end of the week these t emps cannot stick around, the war that as. i will time this out for you in the futurecast. you have to look at the time lapse. isn't that beautiful? gorgeous sunrises. does a few high thin cloud. as some folks would say "cirrus or near us." look at these temperatures. 60 in fredricksburg. hagerstown -- 58 degrees. even oakland md., melting the snow now at 52. do not worry, skier's. temperatures will plummet. you will get more snow later this week. not around here.

just a few flurries by saturday. 70's south of fredericksburg. even parts of the shenandoah valley in the 70-degree mark. this really shows the temperature contrast going on with the intense weather system in the middle of the country. 4 in great falls montana -- great falls, montana. we're in the warm sector today and tomorrow. but here is the cold front and behind it cold air that will move into town. it will slam us, probably late in the day tomorrow. we could get thunderstorms, possibly even strong or severe thunderstorms. hi locally -- likelihood of thunderstorms in arkansas. tomorrow, that severe thunderstorm risk ships is word.

washington is right on the northern fringe of the rest. the raid in metro area -- probably around 11:00 p.m. as when we will have the worst. heavy rainfall possible. gusty, straight line wins. overall the rates of accumulation -- i think we did see on average 1 to 2 inches. -- we could see on average wanted to inches. i think that this is under doing the numbers quite a bit. i think there are downpours that are higher than what our in- house computer model is telling us. sometimes it underestimates. garrett county could get to inches of rain just from that line of thunderstorms -- two inches of rain just from that line of thunderstorms. some thunder shores -- some thunder showers after dark. there you go. back down to the 30's by friday.

and it will be that way. we have had just a few flurries mustered up by friday and saturday with that cooler air. >> we will get through it. >> thanks, adam. gio gonzalez that hard-throwing pitcher, has been linked to a doctor who deals in performance in the anti-drug. he appears in the records of a miami-based clinic called biogenesis. the report acknowledges that the substance that gio gonzalez allegedly acquired does not have any banned substances. he denies using any performance can -- performance enhancing drugs. >> drivers could seek changes on the injured county connector. we will explain.

>> plus, about

>> after days of talk, d.c. mayor vincent gray is weighing in on the budget surplus. >> there has been plenty of talk. now the mayor and city council are narrowing down the list of options. >> $400 million -- that is the projected surplus from last fiscal year. now the question is what do the mayor and the city council plan to do with the money? >> if mayor gray has his way

they will save the majority and spend a little bit of it. he says because the federal economy is still experiencing growing pains it would probably be best for the city to have a large sum of emergency cash. he is hoping that they can move some of that money to help parts of the district that needed the most. >> we hope that we have an opportunity to make significant new investment in social programs but i certainly want to be able to make. >> the mayor did not specify which programs those were, but he said it was unlikely that property taxes would go down although that is something that the council will look at. a public hearing is scheduled for next wednesday morning 10:00 right here at the wilson

building. abc7 news. >> the speed limit on the inner county connector could be raised to 70 m.p.h. if the bill in annapolis becomes law. 3 delegates are co-sponsoring the bill that would raise the speed limit from 65 to 70 miles per hour. a separate emergency bill would raise the speed limit to 60 m.p.h.. >>

>> well, one person is dying for snow and the other at once warm weather. >> no, i am hoping for cold temperatures with snow. >> you will both get a little bit of what you want. basically, it will be like today tomorrow. we will get thunderstorms, i think, after dark tomorrow. after the drive,. as we transition into the colder air, there it is. back to reality. friday saturday. but not release no. just a few ostler -- fleury's. >> --